Wave to defuse Negative or Unhelpful thoughts
The following strategies can help you to defuse your negative thoughts and replace them with realistic ones.
Label Your Thought:
When you have a thought like 'l suck", say 'l'm having a thought that I suck'. ln a situation where 1ou're thinking, 'l’m. going to do a bad job", say, 'l'm having a thought that l’m going to do a bad job'. This subtle change in language can help you recognise that you are not your thoughts and create space for more positive thoughts to arise.
Thank Your Mind:
lf you're having a thought like this day sucks" or an anxious thought such as 'my boss might not like my presentation", say. thank you mind. Thank you for trying to keep me safe and stable, but there's nothing need you to do right now. l'll be okay.
Let Them Float Away:
Our thoughts are fleeting and will eventually be replaced by new thoughts. lf you have a thought like 'l didn't make a good enough impression on that last date', observe the thought and allow and to be released when it's replaced by a new thought. You can imagine the thought floating away or say, 'l just had a thought that I made a bad first impression, but it's just a thought, and I'm going! to move on to my new thoughts.'
Name Your Story:
Often many negative thoughts are combined to create a story. Sometimes it's a reoccurring story like "l'm not good enough'. ln this situation, you can say, 'wow, here's my illogical story', and allow tire thoughts to dissolve.
Replace a Fearful or Angry Thought with a Loving or Compassionate Thought:
lf you have a thought like 'my co-worker is the worst for disagreeing with me', you can replace it with, 'l'm happy that my co-worker cares enough about our work to maki sure that it's the best quality'.
Forgive Yourself:
lt's easy to keep Playing back a negative scenario in your head or continue beating yourself up for something that already passed. But that won’t make the situation change and will only perpetuate the suffering. Instead, forgive yourself. Say, “I tried my best, and I had the best intentions. I will move forward and lean from my mistakes”
Practice Gratitude:
lf you're in a situation where it feels like nothing is going right, take a step back and point out something good, you can recognise your senses, your health, a nearby friend or something else you're thankful for.
Do lt Anyway:
It's important to remember that you can have a thought and still perform a behaviour. lf it's something wholesome that you care about., it's worthwhile to let the thoughts occur and still act. You'II get better at dealing with negative thoughts and gain confidence that you can perform even with negative thoughts.
Mindfulness:
Take stock of the moment; what can you see, feel, hear? What are the sensations that are running through your body? Take a minute to be aware of them and allow yourself to be present in the moment.
Breathe:
Take breaths, inhaling and exhaling with deep purposeful breaths. Keep it up until you feel more in control of yourself and not rushed by your environment and surroundings